


Let's Do It (Let's Fall in Love)

by orderandsophism



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1920s, F/F, Genderbend
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-28
Updated: 2016-02-28
Packaged: 2018-05-23 15:49:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6121527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orderandsophism/pseuds/orderandsophism
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>1920s genderbend AU. Levi is a cigarette girl in New York’s Cotton Club, where Erwin Smith is the featured singer of the club’s resident big band. The blonde is elegant and classically beautiful in all the ways Levi is not, but there’s something that she’s hiding under all her delicate propriety. But Levi has secrets of her own. Inspired by a prompt a thousand years ago from @gunpowderlatte</p>
            </blockquote>





	Let's Do It (Let's Fall in Love)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [gunpowderlatte](https://archiveofourown.org/users/gunpowderlatte/gifts).



Levi narrowly avoided another hand swatting at her behind with the adroit precision of one who had only had to repeat the defensive deflection for the twentieth time that night. Her expression unchanging, she tucked her short, black hair behind her ear and continued to call out the remaining brands of cigarettes still available from her tray without batting a kohl-rimmed eyelash.

Her voice, thick with disinterest, hardly carried over the din of clinking glasses and ebullient conversation sustained by the wonderment and delusive philosophy brought on by the supper club’s particular brand of moonshine. But garnering customers had never been a problem. They were never difficult to come by for her, and half the time she found herself being approached rather than having to approach. She much preferred it over begging for attention like the other cigarette girls with their practiced, coy glances and their eager, familiar smiles.

She was very aware of the looks thrown her way by patrons of the regular variety and the newcomers alike, and did her best to tamp down her irritation. Levi expertly schooled her face into a mask of unnerving indifference. It was something of a boon that she, with her raven-dark hair and her piercing silver eyes, looked every bit the perfect vamp. Somehow her off-putting apathy became transmogrified into the alluring ennui of an unusual exotic instead of the commonplace boredom of a working class girl from Long Island. She found it equal parts irritating and fascinating, but could not deny that it was quite prodigious a turn of enterprising happenstance.

Tonight, she enjoyed somewhat of a reprieve from the wandering hands as wandering eyes were presently captivated by the stunning blonde on stage. Illuminated by the limelight, the silver beading of the blonde’s dress gave off a shimmering glow that made her almost ethereal but for the blood red rouge on her full lips. Unlike the other chintzy girls who had come and gone, talentless dames who managed to sleep their way to a chance to front a big band at the Cotton Club, this one had a decent voice and modicum of pizzazz, as evidenced by the rather thunderous applause that accompanied the end of her set.

Levi watched as the blonde smiled beatifically, waving once before turning to disappear backstage behind the velvet curtain. The weight of the beaded overlay of her dress caused it to cling to every curve of her body, and Levi found herself wondering how it was possible to be shaped like that without being cinched. She couldn't have been cinched, not with how deeply her neckline plunged in the back or the impossibly fluid way her hips swayed as she walked. Levi herself boasted the willowy, slim-hipped frame that was very much en vogue at the moment, and had never found herself envying the tawdry curves her mother in her S-line Edwardian corsets still favored, until this moment.

“Levi!” the bar back called, and Levi gave a start, shaken from her reverie. “Do me a favor. Take this to Erwin’s dressing room?” Levi watched him push a highball glass in her direction, filled to the brim with Pepsi and topped with a bright red maraschino cherry.

Levi frowned. “Do it yourself. Not my job."

“Come on, Levi,” he wheedled, pulling a fantastic pout. “I gotta watch the bar, you know that. What if I snuck you free drinks for the rest of the night?"

"Make it a week." 

He scowled. "Deal."

“Alright,” she sighed, picking up the glass. “So you want me to give it to this Erwin guy? Which one is he? What does he look like?”

“She’s the blonde,” he said slowly, a look of mild scandal on his face that he even had to explain who Erwin was. “The singer? The one making love to the microphone and making me sweat in places I didn’t even know existed on me?”

Levi squinted. “Wait, her name’s Erwin?”

“Yeah, you ain’t never heard of a stage name?” he asked, giving her a pointed look as he wiped down another glass. “All the girls nowadays got one of them boys names. I don’t particularly think it’s cute, but Erwin could call herself Martin Van Buren and I’d be begging her for a date.”

“Charming,” Levi deadpanned.

“So you gonna do it or what?” he asked, pointing at the drink in her hand. “Can’t trust nobody but you. You know these other girls, all jealous and stuff.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure they’ve got their knickers in twists over the loss of you,” Levi muttered, turning to weave her way through the crowd to get to the backstage area.

“Let her know I made it special with some grenadine and cherries, just the way I hear she likes it,” he called after her. “And tell her I think she’s prettier than Mary Pickford!”

Quickest way to get backstage without stepping outside in the chilly autumn air was via the stage itself, and Levi trudged ungracefully up the stairs and behind the curtain to the dressing rooms. The two reserved for the band members were open, the sounds of raucous laughter and clinking glasses almost inviting. Erwin’s was the only one closed, the dark wooden door giving off a sense of foreboding in the cold shadows. Levi felt a stab of apprehension, recalling how much she’d disliked the previous girls who’d inhabited this room before her and wondered what this one would be like, but knocked anyways.

“Come in,” Erwin called, and Levi did so.

Her dressing room was warm with the glow of lamplight, the haziness only augmented by the veil of cigarette smoke that rose like a plume from the enamel holder at her fingertips. Erwin sat at her vanity, pulling off her earrings with a groan, though her eyes lit up pleasantly at the sight of Levi in the doorway.

“Oh, darling! Could you …?” she asked, shifting in her chair to face away from her, lifting her hair to expose the clasp of her pearl necklace just at the nape.

Levi frowned and walked forward, setting the drink on the vanity before wiping her cold hand on her skirt. This close, she could smell the scent of Erwin’s expensive perfume mingled with the naturally sweet fragrance of her skin, her hair, her sweat. She set to work, gingerly handling the clasp to carefully undo it while her eyes trailed down the length of blonde’s spine to the salacious depths of her backless dress. Levi was sure she’d never seen anything so brazen or daring, and found herself mesmerized at the expanse of smooth, pale skin just at her fingertips.

“Thank you,” Erwin breathed, catching undone the necklace and quickly depositing it in her jewelry box before turning around to face her. “Now. How can I help you?”

Levi pointed to the drink on the counter beside her, melting with condensation. “I was told to bring you a cherry soda.”

“Oh!” she exclaimed, breaking into a wide smile and scooping up the drink to take a long, luxuriating sip finished with a sated sigh. Her voice had a velutinous quality to it, pleasing to be sure, but Levi could hear the practiced dulcitude that pervaded the grace in her lilt. “Why, that was kind of you. Thank you.” 

“Not me, the barback,” Levi corrected tonelessly, her disinterest belying the silent concern over the unfamiliar fluttering in her belly. “Wants you to know he made it special. He’s a big fan.”

“Mm,” Erwin hummed amusedly. “I don’t doubt it. Maraschinos are hard to come by, that’s for sure.” She pulled her dress over her head, leaving her topless in satin French knickers of the most delicate pink. Levi fought not to look away, fascinated by both this girl’s moxie and the devastating curve of her waist, determined not to allow herself to be nonplussed by it. Erwin looked like milk and honey personified, creamy and soft and all Hellenic perfection, and Levi watched as she hung her dress neatly on a hanger with her other gowns before slipping into a satin robe.

“What about you?” Erwin asked smoothly. “Did you enjoy the show?”

Levi blinked, still unsettled by the blonde’s utter nakedness, slowly processing that the blonde had posed her a question, and nodded. “Yeah,” she replied quietly. “You were great.” 

The blonde laughed like an arpeggio. “I meant the show, not me. I’m not the only one up there, you know.”

“Yeah, but you’re the one everyone pays attention to,” Levi said, shrugging. “I’ve seen a lot of girls come and go, and they don’t drum up half the applause in a week that you did tonight. I mean it. You’re pretty good.”

“I’m lucky,” Erwin insisted, moving her cigarette to let the ashes fall in the silver ashtray atop her vanity. “Any band worth their salt is touring the country or headlining bigger venues, and this one’s a permanent fixture at the Cotton Club, of all places. I’m surprised I didn’t actually have to physically fight half of New York to land this gig.”

“Yeah, well, Mr Capone’s a lover, not a fighter, if you catch my drift,” Levi said archly, and Erwin laughed. “The owner’s a sucker for blondes, too. It would never have boiled down to that.”

“With me? Yeah, it would have,” Erwin said, finishing off her drink. Her voice took on a tenacity that Levi’s ears caught without mistake. “No man lays a hand on me unless he’s intent on losing it.”

This time, it was Levi’s turn to laugh. “I like you,” she said at last, giving a shy half smile, and she meant it. There was more to this girl than her Emily Post propriety, and Levi liked that. “You remind me of one of the only girls I ever liked. One of your predecessors. Couldn’t hold a note to save her soul but she was funny, at least. Scrappy, a little.”

Erwin patted the curls of her perfectly-coiffed bob. “I don’t believe I’ve ever enjoyed anyone calling me scrappy until now.”

Levi blushed, immediately regretting her choice of words. “I mean, it’s a good thing. She didn’t take shit from nobody, which is probably why she got canned. But that’s why I liked her. And because she used to sing my grandfather’s favorite song as part of her set.”

“Oh?” Erwin asked, pricking up with polite interest. “What song would that be?”

“‘Let’s Do It.’” Erwin did a double take, and laughed. “You mean that song about making whoopie that pretends it’s some kittycat-cute song about falling in love?”

“Yeah,” Levi laughed, rubbing the back of her neck embarrassedly to find that her skin was warm to the touch. “My grandfather is kind of a dirty old man.”

“No kidding,” Erwin agreed, reaching for another cigarette then offering the pack up to Levi. “Want one?”

“Nah, but thanks,” she replied with a wave of her hand. “I should be getting back to work anyways. Here-” She reached for the empty glass. “I can take that back for you.”

“Thanks,” Erwin smiled, touching her hand to her own slender neck in a decidedly coquettish fashion. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”

“Levi,” she answered, already poised to slip out the door. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt a tide of nervous energy, anxious to be out of the stifling warmth of the dressing room and back to the familiar stale air of the supper club. “I work the floor, so you’ll probably see me around a lot. It was nice meeting you … Erwin.”

“Likewise,” Erwin returned with a slow smile. “Stop by anytime you feel like it. I get tired of all these menfolk around. It’s nice to have some female energy.”

“Sure,” Levi nodded, noncommittally, and closed the door behind her.

“What did she say?” the eager barback demanded, looking at Levi expectantly as she made her way back to his counter.

“She said she prefers Coke,” Levi said indifferently, sliding the empty glass in his direction and flouncing off to refill her tray without further explanation.

-

The next night, Levi made her rounds to the sound of Erwin’s sultry crooning, sneaking looks at the silver satin bias cut dress and cursing under her breath in appreciation of her callipygian endowments. She found herself in a curiously generous sort of mood, catching herself going as far as to actually smile at her patrons and wondering why. It was just as bad as looking a gift horse in the mouth, and Levi decided to go with it, humming along happily with whatever tune the band happened to be playing.

And then she heard it.

A lazy, rubato rhythm below a mellifluous piano began, a brief but whimsical saxophone run, and Erwin parted her lips to sing.

> _Birds do it, bees do it_
> 
> _Even educated fleas do it_
> 
> _Let's do it, let's fall in love_

Levi almost didn’t recognize the song, so different was this arrangement from the versions she was accustomed to hearing of the standard, and she found herself staring unabashedly at the stage, mouth agape as she watched the sultry blonde lean into the mic like a lover. Erwin’s eyes surveyed the room, widening fractionally as they spied Levi amongst the crowd, her crimson lips curling into a slow, pleased smile. It was intimate and knowing, and Levi watched it fade from her lips as she turned away.

The smile had most definitely been for her. Clandestine, ephemeral, fleeting, and solely for her. Levi could not help but feel pleased.


End file.
